September 29, 2005

After 16 successful Mad as Hell rants with hundreds of comments and nationwide attention about my switch to Mac, I've developed these two tools to show the world that the switch is worth every penny and will save you plenty over a very short period of time.

These are my final Recommendations and Total Cost of Ownership Analysis for anyone in the world that wants to switch to a Mac. This is what I think you should do if you want to maximize a carefree and secure personal computer existence. Remember this is all IMHO.

The pdf will describe how to use the spreadsheet so make sure to download both. When you are done with the spreadsheet, tell us what you think and please share your results. Debate is good!

Winn Schwartau is a computer security expert. Several months ago, he switched from Windows to a Mac. He documented his experience in a series of 16 articles entitled Mad As Hell. You may not agree with all his conclusions, but it is definitely worth reading.

Today he posted his final conclusions, along with a spreadsheet showing the total cost of ownership for each platform. I think you will be surprised at his results. I was.

'Walt Disney???s widow was being interviewed after the completion of Disney World in Florida. The reporter remarked, 'Isn???t it a shame that your husband never got to see this?' Mrs. Disney quickly corrected him. 'He did see it. That is why it is here!'

Kentucky Dumps Emissions Testing: "In 45 days, Kentucky motorists will be free from the biennial hassle of driving to an emissions station (tdf), waiting in long lines and paying $20 only to find their car is not polluting. The US Environmental Protection Agency has approved plans to shut down the testing program.
Since September 1999, Northern Kentucky motorists have had a tailpipe inspection performed as a condition automobile registration renewal. Last year, about 100,000 cars were tested and 97 percent passed. Of 21,457 new cars (model years 2001-2005) tested, only two failed. Nonetheless, motorists with non-polluting cars paid $1.9 million in fees. The state of Oregon reported the same 97 percent passage rate last year.
Many Kentucky motorists complained of the need to drive to one testing station in each of the three county subject to the program, and that the testing stations did not accept credit cards.
In response, legislators have been fighting for years to end the testing program. After approving legislation to end testing in Louisville, a federal judge in January last year had ruled that ending the program without EPA approval violated the Clean Air Act. The state now has appropriate permission to close the Northern Kentucky testing program."

This has been an ongoing issue here in Denver for as long as we've been here. I can't remember any large city I've lived in, Chicago, Houston, New Orleans, or for that matter, other large cities I've lived near that have had any sort of issues with a Columbus Day Parade (tdf), as Denver has.

Mayor rips parade fight: "Denver Mayor John Hickenlooper (tdf) sent a letter Wednesday to leaders on both sides of the Columbus Day (tdf) parade conflict, expressing frustration at the annual confrontations over the historical figure's legacy."

First gadgets led thy astray from those sweet watery
suds and now bringeth thy back. Two Germans by the names of Schmitz and Butz (te he) have created a Philip
Morris beer coaster with integrated pressure sensor and radio transmitter to signal bar staff when your beer
is almost empty. Presumably, this is just the first step to replace all bar staff with
robots so that we can once again suck down those glorious
plumes of tasty arsenic and copper-laden red packs with impunity.

A nice short and to the point article on this current news. IMOIAT, there are much more important issues to address than old, miniscule bits of Texas Political history.

Stephen Spruiell On The Delay Indictment: "Of course the big story today is House Majority Leader Tom Delay (tdf)'s indictment for conspiracy. The lefties are already proclaiming a victory before there's even been a trial (sounds familar, doesn't it? Think Plamegate, WMDgate, National Guardgate, etc for a..."